


Meowths In The Cradle

by Keaton_Furman_Prower



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Also Yellow isn't her real name, Also the trainers from the Gotcha! music video show up, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And I decided to name them after the main characters from the Transformers movies for some reason, Ash and Meowth are a team, Ash is still kind of an idiot, Ash just doesn't understand her real name, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Meowth is the best starter Pokemon ever, Mostly Anime based with some influences from other canons, Pokemon Battles, Pokemon Journey, Yellow speaks Spanish
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-12 11:28:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29509038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keaton_Furman_Prower/pseuds/Keaton_Furman_Prower
Summary: Ash slept in, and was unable to get any of the three traditional starters. Instead, his journey started with a truly unique partner: a talking Meowth.Or: Ash gets Team Rocket's Meowth instead of Pikachu. What could possibly go wrong?
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28





	1. A Different Partner

Ash shared in shock as he looked at the three pokeballs, all of which were empty.

"Are there really no Pokemon left, Professor?" Ash asked desperately.

"Well," Professor Oak said as he scratched his chin nervously, "there is one other Pokemon. But-"

"I'll take it!"

The Professor grimaced as he looked down at the pokeball machine. He then pressed a button, and a pokeball emerged.

"I must warn you, Ash," he said as he took out the pokeball, "this Pokemon is a bit… unique."

"It doesn't matter," Ash said determinedly. "I need a Pokemon!"

"Very well," Oak said as he pressed the Pokeball's button. With a flash of light, a Pokemon emerged from the ball.

"Whoa!"

The Pokemon's slim body was a cream color, while the tip of its long tail and hind paws were brown. It had several whiskers around its face, as well as black ears. Most notably, it had a large golden coin on its forehead.

"It's name is Meowth," said Oak.

"Wow!" Ash said in amazement as he looked at the fuzzy pokemon in front of him. "It's so cool!"

Meowth yawned and stretched out, then looked upwards at Professor Oak.

"Alright old man, what do you have for me today?"

Ash's eyes widened.

"It… can talk?!" he said in shock, causing Meowth to look back towards him.

"Indeed," said Oak. "As I said, this Meowth is a rather unique Pokemon that has the ability to speak human language. I'm not quite sure how he managed to do so, but it's fascinating, and it may come in handy for you."

"Awesome!" Ash said as he grabbed Meowth and smiled. "Hey Meowth? You want to go out on an adventure?"

"Excuse me?"

"I'm choosing you as my starter Pokemon!" said Ash. "Isn't that cool?"

For a moment, the scratch cat Pokemon stared at Ash as the young trainer smiled at him.

He then drew out his claws and began to slash at him.

"Ow, ow ow!" Ash cried out in pain.

"Ah, I feel I may have needed to warn you," said Oak. "He is rather distrusting of humans."

"Owww," Ash moaned as he let Meowth down. "Come on, Meowth, can't we try to get along?"

"Hmph!" said Meowth. "Why should I try to get along with some twerp like you?"

"Twerp?" Ash said, feeling slightly insulted. "Hey, just so you know, I'm going to become the greatest Pokemon Master of all time!"

Meowth stared at Ash with a raised eyebrow. In response, the Raven haired boy got down on his knee and looked at the small feline with a more gentle look on his face.

"Come on, Meowth, I think we can be a great team together, and we could really go far if we work together. So what do you say? Can you at least give me a chance?"

Meowth looked at Ash suspiciously, unsure of whether or not he was really trustworthy. After a moment, however, he sighed and nodded.

"Fine," he said as he crossed his arms. "But I ain't going back into one of those little balls."

Ash smiled. Even if Meowth seemed reluctant, he was at least getting somewhere.

"Ash dear!"

Ash blinked and looked up, surprised to see his mother entering the room.

"Mom! What are you doing here?"

"I came to bring you your stuff," she said in a matter-of-fact tone. "You were in such a rush that you didn't even bother to change!"

Ash's face went red at the reminder that he was still in his pyjamas. This in turn caused Meowth to burst out laughing.

"Oh?" said Delia. "And who is this?"

"Oh yeah," Ash said as he lifted Meowth up for his mother to see. "This is Meowth! He's going to be my partner!"

"Oh," Delia said, slightly surprised. "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting someone like him!"

"Believe me, lady, I wasn't expecting someone like this either!"

"HE CAN TALK?!" Delia said in shock.

"Professor Oak said he was unique," Ash said with a shrug.

"Yeah, I'm one of a kind!" Meowth said proudly. "Now, can you please put me down?"

Ash quickly set him down, then turned to grab the supplies his mother had brought.

"Thanks, mom," he said, still embarrassed about the whole situation.

"Don't mention it," Delia said with a smile. "Just remember to change your underwear every single day!"

Ash fell over as Meowth laughed again.

* * *

A short while later, the pair had made their way onto route 1. Ash was excited to start his career as a trainer, while Meowth was mostly just happy to be out of Oak's lab.

"So, what do you think?" said Ash. "I really want to catch a Pokemon before we reach Viridian City!"

"As long as I don't have to go into a Pokeball, we're good," said Meowth. "I'm just glad I'm out of that lab."

Ash looked down at his new partner with curiosity. The small feline was unlike anything he had ever seen; he had never heard of a talking Pokemon before, and it meant that Meowth could communicate with him much more easily than if he had any other Pokemon. If he could still talk with other Pokemon, then it would open up a whole new world of opportunities for Ash on his quest to become a Pokemon Master.

Assuming, of course, that he could get Meowth to trust him.

"So," he said, hoping to break the ice, "you didn't like being with Professor Oak?"

"No way," said Meowth. "The old man was constantly pestering me with questions. Like How did you learn how to talk? Or What do Pokemon feel in their Pokeballs? And sometimes he tried to get me to translate for other Pokemon, or try to do other weird sciencey stuff. Honestly, I'm glad to be outta there."

"Oh," said Ash. "Well, then I guess we're going to have a good time together."

"Pfft, as if," said Meowth. "I ain't glad about being saddled with some twerp."

"I'm not a twerp!" Ash said in annoyance. "My name's Ash, and I'm going to be a Pokemon Master!"

"Uh huh," Meowth said in an unimpressed tone. "Well, Mr. Pokemon Master, what do you want to do to start off our grand adventure?"

Ash tried to answer, but stopped before he could answer. In truth, he wasn't entirely sure of what he was going to do now. True, he knew he wanted to sign up for the Pokemon League and travel across the region to collect the badges. But right now, at the very beginning? He had no idea.

Fortunately, a sound coming from behind a tuft of grass gave him an answer.

"Hey, look!" he said as a Pidgey poked its head from out of the grass. He then quickly pulled out his Pokedex to scan it.

" _Pidgey, the Tiny Bird Pokemon. Pidgey is very docile. If attacked, it will often kick up sand to protect itself rather than fight back._ "

"That's perfect!" he said. "Come on Meowth! Let's catch ourselves a partner!"

"A Pidgey?" Meowth said as he took a look at the bird Pokemon. "I guess that's a good place to start."

"Yup!" said Ash. "So, what moves do you know?"

"Well, I got Fury Swipes and Scratch," said Meowth, "Shouldn't be too hard to take it down."

Ash smiled. While it wasn't an expansive moveset, it was good enough.

"Okay then!" he said. "Meowth, use Scratch!"

The scratch cat Pokemon grinned as his claws extended.

"Take this, birdbrain!" he cried out as he lunged at Pidgey. The tiny bird Pokemon had just enough time to realize it was under attack to try to dodge, but it still received a glancing scratch from Meowth's claws.

"Keep it up!" said Ash. "Fury Swipes!"

"Don't need to tell me twice!" Meowth said as he slashed at Pidgey. The bird squawked as it was attacked, but quickly responded with a Sand Attack, causing Meowth to cry out in pain.

"Agh!" Meowth cried as he wiped at his eyes. "Stupid bird! You'll pay for that!"

"You got this, Meowth!" said Ash. "Another Scratch!"

The scratch cat Pokemon was all too eager to oblige, and rushed forwards. This time, however, Pidgey opened its wings and flew out of the way before the attack could connect. Unable to stop, Meowth was carried forwards by his momentum and crashed into an object.

"Ow!" he cried out. "What was that?!"

He looked up, ready to give whatever he had crashed into a brutal scratching.

His face then paled as he realized what he had crashed into.

"Spear!"

Ash felt a drop of sweat as he lifted up his Pokedex.

" _Spearow the Tiny Bird Pokemon. Spearow has a very loud cry that can be heard over half a mile away. If its high, keening cry is heard echoing all around, it is a sign that they are warning each other of danger_."

"That's not good," he said nervously.

"Oh," Meowth whimpered as Spearow glared at him. "Um, nice birdie?"

"Spear!" the flying type cried. It then lunged at the scratch cat Pokemon.

"Yah!" Meowth cried as he jumped out of the way. "I'm sorry! It's the other bird's fault! We just wanted him! Attack him!"

Not bothering to listen, the irate flying type continued to attack. Meowth cried out as he ran away, while Ash watched in horror.

"No, Meowth!"

Thinking fast, he bent down and grabbed a rock. He then flung it with all his might, hitting Spearow on the head.

To his relief, the tiny bird Pokemon stopped chasing his starter.

He was much less relieved when he realized that Spearow was now glaring at him.

"Uh," he said as a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, "hi?"

Spearow screeched as it flew right at him.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" he cried as the brown avian pecked and scratched at him. "That hurts!"

"Spearow! Spear! Spear!"

Meanwhile, Meowth was gasping in relief at no longer being attacked. However, his eyes were quickly drawn to the sight of Ash desperately trying to fend off Spearow.

"Aw, Arceus, the twerp's in trouble now."

As he watched, a thought came to him. If Ash was distracted by the Spearow, then clearly he wouldn't be able to notice anything Meowth would do.

What was stopping the scratch cat Pokemon from just slipping away unnoticed?

 _The twerp would never notice until it was too late!_ Meowth thought as he grinned. He then began to run as fast as his legs could carry him.

_Ha! Free at last! And I thought I'd never get to run away from anything else ever again!_

At that moment, he stopped right in his tracks.

_Of course… I could have run away if the others had helped me._

He then remembered the Meowth gang he'd belonged to once. True, they may have accepted him as part of their group, but they had never tried to help him whenever he had fallen behind during their food raids. Admittedly, he had brought it upon himself by trying to be more human, but it still hurt.

_Come on, Meowth, can't we try to get along?_

And what had been the point of trying to act human, anyway? He had been trying to impress a female of his species, one who had stated that she preferred the company of humans. He had put so much effort into speaking human language, walking on two feet, and emulating human actions as much as he could, until he had finally succeeded. And what did he get in return? The object of his affections had rejected him, calling him a freak.

_This is Meowth! He's going to be my partner!_

_Partner_. He had never found anyone who had truly accepted him as an equal. All his life, he had been forced to fend for himself. Even in a group, he had ultimately been subservient to the Persian. Even worse, the Professor thought of him as some weird curiosity to be studied in some lab.

And then Ash appeared, eager to call him his partner. And Meowth had thrown that offer back in his face.

_Come on, Meowth, I think we can be a great team together, and we could really go far if we work together. So what do you say? Can you at least give me a chance?_

Meowth gritted his teeth. He really didn't want to do this. But he felt in his heart that he had no other choice.

"Take this!" he cried out as his claws extended. He then lunged at Spearow and began to slash at it. The tiny bird Pokemon cried out as it was shoved off of Ash, but Meowth didn't give it any time to strike back.

"Owww…" Ash groaned as he slowly got back up. To his surprise, he saw Meowth viciously clawing at the flying type that had just been pecking at him a few seconds ago.

"What are you waiting for?" Meowth yelled. "Get out one of those ball thingies!"

"Ball… yeah!" Ash said as he grabbed an empty Pokeball. "Pokeball go!"

Meowth jumped out of the way as the Pokeball fell on Spearow. The tiny bird Pokemon was sucked into the red and white sphere, which then began to shake as the release ball glowed red. Ash and Meowth held their breaths as they watched the ball shake.

After what seemed like an eternity, the ball stopped moving and let out a couple of sparks.

"We… did it," said Ash.

"Yeah," said Meowth.

Their faces then burst into a pair of huge grins.

"We did it!" said Ash.

"Yeah we did!" said Meowth.

The two continued to laugh and bounce around as they celebrated their first catch. Then they stopped to look at each other, with Ash bending down to look at Meowth.

"Good job, partner," he said as he held a fist towards Meowth. The normal type was briefly taken aback by the gesture, but soon smiled as he bumped his trainer's fist.

"You too… partner."

* * *

A short while afterwards, the weather unexpectedly turned rainy, prompting Ash and Meowth to seek shelter under a tree.

"And so I want to be the very best, like no one ever was," said Ash. "That's why I want to become a Pokemon trainer."

"Well, you got big dreams," Meowth said, impressed by Ash's ambitions. "Dunno if you'll be able to get them, but props to you, Ash."

Ash chuckled, then looked down at the Pokeball that contained his newly caught Spearow.

"Speaking of partners, maybe we should get to know our newest one?"

"You sure?" said Meowth. "She seemed kind of angry."

" _She_?" Ash said, surprised by the revelation. He then smiled, realizing just how useful Meowth's talents would prove to be. "Never mind, I'm sure we can work it out."

With this, he opened the Pokeball, revealing the tiny bird Pokemon. She seemed to be angry, though not to the point that she was trying to attack them.

"Hey, Spearow," Ash said as he slowly extended his hand. "I'm Ash, and, well, I caught you."

"Spear?" Spearow said, staring suspiciously, but with a hint of curiosity in her eyes.

"Yeah," Meowth said as he stepped forward, doing his best not to sound nervous. "Sorry about beating you up and stuff. No hard feelings?"

For a moment, the avian was silent, causing both Ash and Meowth to sweat nervously. Then, she squawked, causing Meowth to turn his head.

"What did she say?" said Ash.

"She wants to know what you're planning on doing with her," Meowth replied.

"Oh, said Ash. "Well, I want to become the greatest Pokemon Trainer in the world. And we could really use a feisty Pokemon like you on our team."

"Spear," Spearow said, considering what Ash had told her. "Spear, spear."

"That's great!" said Meowth. "She says she'll join us!"

Ash grinned at the news, excited to have a new member on their team.

"Welcome to the team then, Spearow!"

"Spear, spear!"

As the three cheered together, the rains began to dissipate. As the sun began to shine again, a beautiful rainbow became visible in the sky.

"Look at that," said Ash. "Doesn't that make you excited?"

"Yeah," said Meowth. "It's like a sign that our journey is gonna be really lucky!"

"Spearow!"

The group smiled as they took in the sight. Then, as they watched, they caught sight of something remarkable.

"Hey guys," said Ash, "What is that?"

A huge figure flew out of the clouds and over the rainbow. It was clearly a flying-type Pokemon of some sort, although it did not look like anything Ash had ever seen. It had an avian body that was mostly red and white in color, albeit with green and gold along its wings and tail.

"Who's that Pokemon?" Ash said out loud as he pulled out his Pokedex.

" _Data not found. Pokemon may not be native to Kanto. Consult your local professor for more information._ "

"No data?" Ash said in confusion. Turning back towards the mysterious Pokemon, he caught sight of an object falling towards them. It seemed to float slowly downwards, getting closer to them each second. Now more confused than ever, Ash reached out towards the object, waiting for it to come close enough to grab.

Finally, he caught it.

"What is it, Ash?"

Ash looked at the object, and immediately recognized it as a feather, albeit one unlike any he had seen before. It was colored the same as the mysterious Pokemon; mostly red and white, with green and gold coloring at the tip.

"A feather?" said Meowth.

"Yeah," said Ash as he looked back towards the sky. The mysterious Pokemon had flown further, and was now barely visible over the horizon. Even so, the group couldn't help but stare in awe as it vanished.

"Hey guys…" Ash said as he watched the mystery Pokemon disappear.

"Yeah?"

"Spear?"

Ash looked down at his Pokemon with a determined look on his face.

"We're going to become the best… and then we'll meet that Pokemon again!"

The two Pokemon smiled with the same determined look on their faces.

"Yeah we will!" said Meowth. "We'll be the very best, like no one ever was!"

"Spearow!"

Ash turned to the feather in his hand and smiled. The day had started out very differently from what he had in mind, but it was working out far better than he could ever have imagined. He had a starter unlike any other, a newly caught Pokemon with a fierce fighting spirit, and an encounter with an unknown Pokemon, and even something to take with him from said encounter.

Overall, he had a very good feeling about this journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this was an idea I had floated in my head to a while, but didn't start working on until recently as a way to deal with writer's block. I originally posted it on Fanfiction.net, but I decided that I might as well make this my first official AO3 story. Hopefully, people will be able to enjoy it here too!
> 
> Also, Meowth would be a pretty awesome addition to Ash's team. Probably. Maybe.


	2. Viridian City

The next day, Ash and Meowth arrived in Viridian City. It was not quite as large as some of the larger cities, such as Celadon or Saffron, but it was still much bigger than what Ash was used to.

"Viridian sure is different," said Ash. "Most of the roads in Pallet town aren't even paved."

"Yeah," said Meowth nonchalantly. "Most cities are like this, you know. Your home is really small."

"I know," said Ash. "It's just that you get used to it after you've lived most of your life in such a small town."

The two continued to walk along the road for a while, taking in the sights of the city. While to an outside observer, it would seem that they were just walking around aimlessly, this was not the case. In fact, they were seeking out one notable location.

"So, how much longer until we reach the Gym?" said Meowth.

"I don't think it's far," said Ash. "I'm pretty sure we're almost there."

"I can't see it anywhere, though," said Meowth. "You think we should ask someone for directions?"

Ash shrugged, unsure of whether to do so or just trust his gut. After a while with no success, however, he started to wonder if his gut was not as reliable as he had hoped.

"Maybe I should ask someone," he said as he looked around. Within a few seconds, he spotted a boy walking towards a store.

"Hey," he said, catching the boy's attention, "do you know where the gym is?"

"You're looking for the Pokemon Gym?"

Ash tilted his head in curiosity. While it was somewhat subtle, the boy had some sort of foreign accent.

"Yeah," he said, deciding not to dwell on it too much. "I want to challenge the leader and get my first badge!"

"Your first badge?" the boy said, raising an eyebrow. "Viridian isn't really the best gym for that. The leader is pretty ruthless."

Ash grimaced as he heard that, but he didn't let himself be intimidated. He was going to be a Pokemon Master, and he wouldn't run away from a challenge so easily!

"That doesn't matter! I'll win for sure!"

"Okay, if you say so," the boy said as he pointed his hand. "The Gym is a couple of blocks that way."

Ash and Meowth looked, and groaned.

"Aw, man! That's the direction we were coming from!"

The boy stared at them in stunned silence.

"Oh well," said Ash as he and Meowth turned around and began to walk. "Thanks anyway!"

"No problem," the boy said as he watched the pair leave. "Good luck with the badge!"

The boy watched the raven haired trainer walk off in the direction of the Gym. He then turned around and sighed.

" _Están jodidos._ "

* * *

"You gotta be kidding me!"

Ash and Meowth stared in shock at the sign in front of the Gym.

"Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Viridian City Gym will be closed until further notice?!" Ash read in anger. "But I came all the way here for my first badge!"

"Yeah, that sucks," Meowth said in agreement. "Oh well, we can catch a bunch of new Pokemon and be a lot stronger when they do open!"

"Yeah," Ash said as he scratched his chin. "That guy did say the leader was ruthless."

Before they could continue their musing, they heard a voice calling out.

"Pikachu! Where are you?"

The two turned in the direction of the voice. They spotted a boy, slightly older than Ash, with messy dark blue hair, a black and white shirt with short sleeves and a picture of a cloudy sky, blue jeans, and a red sweater tied around his waist. He also had a pair of red sandals on his feet. He also had a somewhat bored look on his face, although a closer look would reveal that he was mostly concerned about something.

The duo was particularly interested in the Pokemon that was accompanying him, however.

Resting on the boy's shoulder was the happiest Eevee they had ever seen. It had a cheerful smile on its face which conveyed a level of bliss that most people and Pokemon could only dream of reaching. And finally, as if to complete the perfect cheer, the evolution Pokemon was wearing a black baseball cap that looked familiar, though Ash couldn't tell why.

"Man, where did you go off to?" the newcomer said.

"Eev-Eevee!"

"Is something wrong?" Ash said, catching the boy's attention.

"Huh?"

"You look like something's wrong," said Ash. "Are you okay?"

"Oh," the boy said. "Don't worry, it's nothing."

"You sure?" said Ash. "I mean, you said something about someone going off somewhere. You sure you don't want help?"

The boy raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"You want to help?"

"Yeah!" said Ash. "I mean, why not? You look like you could use it!"

The boy stared for a moment, then shrugged. In spite of himself, a small smile appeared on his face.

"I'm looking for my partner," he said finally. "He's a Pikachu. I lost him while we were going on a walk.

"Oh," Ash said as his gaze went towards the Eevee. "I thought he was your partner."

"Nah," the boy said. "I found him while I was looking for Pikachu. He had the hat with him, so I think he's lost too."

"Eevee! Eevee!"

"Oh really?" said Meowth. "He says he's looking for his partner too!"

The boy stared blankly.

"He can talk?"

"He's special," said Ash.

"You know it!" Meowth said proudly.

Shrugging, the boy decided to roll with it.

"Okay, we'll find Pikachu and your friend," he said.

"Awesome!" said Ash. "Let's do it!"

The two boys then set off, determined to find the missing individuals.

"My name's Ash, by the way," said Ash. "And this is Meowth."

"Sup?" said Meowth.

Nice to meet you," the boy said. "I'm Sam."

"Nice to meet you too!" said Ash.

The search had not been quite as easy as they had hoped. While Viridian was not a particularly big city, it was still easy to get lost among the many streets and alleys. And even with two humans and two Pokemon to look around, there was still a significant amount of space to look through.

"So, how do we know if we're looking at your Pikachu and not someone else's?" Ash said, voicing a concern he was having.

"Don't worry," said Sam, "I'll know."

"Yeah, but we won't," Meowth pointed out. "We've never met him before."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Sam. "Well, just look for a really grumpy Pikachu. Like, you can tell just by looking at him he's moody. Also, he has a red hat."

"Real grumpy, with a red hat," said Meowth. "Got it."

Sam smiled, then started to walk away, carrying Eevee with him. Now somewhat more aware of what they needed to find, Ash and Meowth made their way through the street, seeking out a Pikachu that looked like what their new acquaintance had described

As they continued their search, they stopped in front of the Pokemon Center. Ash looked at the building in slight awe, having rarely seen one in the flesh before. True, he had been to Professor Oak's lab many times before, but that didn't quite have the same impact.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was now a trainer, and he'd be seeing a lot more of these now.

"Man," he said as he stood in front of the building, "it's so weird that I've never really been in one of these, and now we're going to be seeing a whole lot of these."

"Is it really that weird?" Meowth asked. "You've been to the Professor's lab before."

"Yeah," said Ash, "but I've lived in Pallet Town my whole life, and the lab was always just down the road. We never had a Pokemon Center in Pallet Town."

"That's true," said Meowth. "You must've been real bored all the time."

"Not really," said Ash. "It wasn't a big city, but there was a lot to do. Did Professor Oak ever tell you about the summer camp he hosted?"

"Summer camp? What was that like?"

Before Ash could respond, he was interrupted by a voice.

"Did that Pokemon just talk?"

The duo turned around, and were met by the hazel eyes of a girl. She seemed to be older than him, around the same as Sam, and she was wearing a black and white sweater with red and blue stripes on the lower sleeves. She also had a grey skirt which just barely hid the tight black shorts she was wearing, as well as red shoes, and a large white backpack with a picture of the sky surrounded by red and blue sections. Most notably, her messy brown hair was tied into a pair of twintails that were shaped into several round sections with red and blue hairbands.

"Well, I'm talking right now," said Meowth. "Something weird about that?"

The girl had already been surprised, but now she was staring blankly at Meowth.

"He's a pretty special Pokemon," said Ash.

"That's… actually pretty cool," the girl said. "I wish my buddy could do that. Well, if he wasn't lost."

"Lost?" said Ash.

"Yeah," the girl said. "And it was the first day of our journey, too. I did find this guy, though."

She pointed towards her shoulder, letting Ash and Meowth look at the Pokemon on her shoulder. As they did, their eyes widened at the sight of the figure.

It was the grumpiest looking Pikachu they had ever seen. And it was wearing a red hat.

"Hey, where did you find that Pikachu?"

"Oh, him?" the girl said as she pointed at Pikachu. "I found him after I lost my buddy. I think he was lost too, 'cause he has this hat."

"And what was your partner?" Ash asked, feeling that he already knew the answer.

Before she could answer, the girl's attention was drawn towards something behind Ash.

"Eevee!"

Ash and Meowth turned around and saw a surprised-looking Sam, with Eevee holding out his arm in celebration. They watched as the evolution Pokemon bounced off Sam's shoulder and rushed off towards his partner. At the same time, Pikachu did the same, passing Eevee and rushing off to the blue haired boy.

"Gah!" Sam said as Pikachu practically climbed onto his face. He quickly grabbed the mouse Pokemon and yanked him off his face. Ash and Meowth stared at the sight, unsure of how to react.

"Uh…" Ash said, trying hard to think of some words to say in this situation. Deciding to try not to think about it too much, he turned around to look at Eevee and the girl. Their reaction to being reunited was completely different; she was happily hugging Eevee and planting kisses on his cheek, while he was squealing happily.

"She's… enthusiastic," Meowth said finally.

"Yeah," said Ash. "So, I guess you found your buddy?"

The girl turned around, a huge smile on her face.

"Yeah! Thank you for finding Eevee!"

"Eevee!"

"Uh, you're welcome," said Sam as he walked up to her. "Though, I guess I should thank you too for finding Pikachu."

"Pika."

"I guess so," the girl said. "I'm Mikaela, by the way. And you already know Eevee."

"Vee!"

"Nice to meet you!" said Ash. "My name's Ash, and this is Meowth!"

"Hey there!"

"And I'm Sam," said Sam. "I guess you got to know Pikachu already, right?"

"Chu."

"It's nice to meet you guys!" Mikaela said. "Are you going on a journey too?"

"Oh yeah!" Ash said as he pumped his fist. "I just started yesterday, in Pallet Town."

"You're from Pallet Town?" said Mikaela. "Do you know Professor Oak?"

"Yeah," said Ash, "he gave me Meowth."

"Neat," said Mikaela. "What about you, Sam?"

The boy, who had just been trying to adjust Pikachu on his shoulder, looked up.

"Me?" he asked. "I mean, I've thought about starting a journey, but I… never felt like it, I guess."

"Really?" said Mikaela. "That sucks. You and Pikachu look like a great team, and you could do a lot of cool stuff together!"

At that moment, Pikachu jumped back onto Sam's face. This in turn caused him to cry out in shock as he tried to pull the grumpy electric type off. As the two struggled Ash, Mikaela, and Meowth watched, small drops of sweat rolling down their foreheads.

"Is his face really that comfy?" Mikaela wondered out loud.

Ash turned his head towards Mikaela, then back to Sam. He then looked back and forth between the two, an idea forming in his head.

"You know," he said, "they say that it's more fun to travel with friends."

As he finally succeeded in removing Pikachu from his face, Sam looked at Ash in surprise.

"What are you talking about, Ash?"

"Well, Mikaela and I just started our journeys, and you want to start, so why don't we all go together?"

Mikaela and Sam stared at Ash, seemingly surprised by Ash's suggestion. Meowth seemed surprised as well, though his face looked rather pensive.

"You know," he said, "that does sound like it would be fun! Why don't we all give it a go?"

"Pikachu, Pika."

"Eeveevee!"

"See?" Meowth said as he pointed at the other Pokemon. "They agree too!"

"Really?" said Mikaela, surprised by Meowth's declaration. "Do you really want to go with them, Eevee?"

"Vee! Eevee!"

As Mikaela cheered, Sam looked at Pikachu in surprise.

"You really think so too?"

"Pikachu," Pikachu said, seemingly unenthusiastic. However, he did lift a paw in an approving manner.

"Well," said Sam, "I… guess we'll be going on a journey too."

"Awesome!" said Ash. "Then we'll be traveling together!"

"Yeah!" said Mikaela. "We're gonna have so much fun!"

Ash grinned at the prospect of having two new traveling buddies.

* * *

Ash, Mikaela, and their Pokemon sat in the lobby of the Pokemon Center. While they had both been ready to set off, Sam hadn't even had a backpack, so he still needed to get ready to set off. Thus, while he had one back home to get ready, the others were currently sitting in the lobby of the Pokemon Center, patiently awaiting his return.

"How much longer is he gonna take?"

Ash and Meowth turned to Mikaela, who was perhaps not quite as patient as them.

"Be patient," said Meowth, "he's got a lot of stuff to do before he's ready."

"It's still taking a lot longer than I thought," Mikaela said in frustration.

"Eevee! Eevee!" Eevee said as he patted her head.

Ash sighed and looked around the center. His eyes fell on the video phones, and he thought back to his mother.

"I think I'll call home," he said as he and Meowth got up.

"Sure," Mikaela said in a nonchalant tone. Shrugging at this, Ash got up and walked over to the video phones.

Upon reaching them, he put in a coin and dialed in his home phone number. After a few seconds of waiting, a blank screen appeared and a voice began to come out of the phone.

"Delia Ketchum speaking, how can I help you?"

"Hey Mom," Ash replied, "it's me."

"Ash!" Delia said excitedly. "It's you!"

The screen then changed, showing the excited face of Ash's mom.

"It's so great to see you, sweetie!" Delia said as she finally got a good look at her son. "And you too, Meowth!"

"Yeah, you too," said Ash. "You won't believe how my first day went."

"It sure wasn't anything we'll forget any time soon," said Meowth.

"Was it?" asked Delia. "Tell me everything!"

Ash smiled as he told her everything that had occurred the day before, from his initial difficulty with Meowth, to their attempt to catch Pidgey, to their success with Spearow, and finally, the mysterious Pokemon they had seen.

"And then it flew off over the rainbow," Ash said, finishing up his tale of his first day.

"That's amazing, Ash," his mother said. "You sure had an eventful first day as a trainer!"

"Yeah," said Meowth. "It's the type of day that tells you were gonna have an awesome journey!"

"Totally," said Ash. "And we haven't even started with what happened once we got to Viridian City."

"I can't believe you made it to Viridian City already!" said Delia. "It took your father four days to get to Viridian City when he went on his journey."

"Oh."

Meowth looked up at his trainer, surprised by his sudden change in demeanor.

"You alright, Ash?" he asked, only to be ignored.

"Mom… where did-"

"Let's not worry about that too much," Delia said, quickly changing the topic. "What have you been up to since you got to Viridian?"

"Mom, what happened to dad?"

"Ash, it's not important," Delia said quickly. "You don't need to worry about it while you're on your journey."

"But I want-"

"I said it's not important!"

Ash flinched at his mother's tone. Meowth looked on, unsure of what to say, while Delia had a sad look on her face.

"I… I'm sorry, Ash. It's just difficult to talk about your father."

"That's what you always say," said Ash.

For a moment, there was silence. Mother and son simply sat at the phone, not sure what to say next. Meanwhile, Meowth tried to think of something he could say to alleviate the tension that had taken over.

Finally, Ash spoke up.

"I… should probably get going," he said.

"I suppose so," Delia said in reply. "You're still changing your underwear every day, right?"

"Yes, Mom," said Ash.

"Good," said Delia. "Have a safe trip."

"Thanks," said Ash. "Bye Mom."

"Bye, sweetie."

Ash hung up, then sank back in his seat. Still somewhat worried, Meowth decided to speaking up.

"So… what's up with you and your dad?"

"I don't know," said Ash. "I've never met him."

"Really?" said Meowth. "Never?"

"Yeah," said Ash. "And whenever I ask mom, she never tells me anything."

"Oh," said Meowth. "Sounds like a sore subject."

Ash sighed as he looked downwards. He then smiled as he got back to his feet.

"Yeah, well, if Mom won't tell me about Dad, then I'll have to find out myself!"

"You think you can do that?" Meowth asked.

"Of course I can!" said Ash. "As long as we believe in ourselves, we can do anything!"

"Heh," said Meowth, "I like your attitude."

Ash grinned, happy to hear the encouragement. To be honest, he wasn't quite sure if he could actually find out what happened to his dad. He hardly knew where to start. But he wanted to find out more than almost anything. And he was willing to do anything to find the truth.

"Oh, look," said Meowth, "Sam's back."

Ash looked back and saw Sam walking into the Center, carrying a backpack that looked surprisingly similar to Mikaela's, albeit in black rather than white.

"Oh, hey Sam," Ash said as he made his way back to the group.

"Sorry I took so long," he said. "I had a lot to pack."

"Pika, Pika," said Pikachu.

"It's okay," said Ash. "I remember how excited I was when I was getting ready for my journey."

"Oh wow! We have the same backpack brand!"

Ash, Sam, and their Pokemon turned to Mikaela, who seemed unusually fascinated by the blue haired boy's backpack.

"Uh, yeah," said Sam, "I guess we do."

"Neat!"

"Eevee Eev!"

Sam and Ash looked at each other, and gave a shrug.

"Anyway," said Ash, "is there anything we need to do before we set off?"

"We should probably get our Pokemon checked with Nurse Joy," said Sam. "If we're going to be out in the wild, we should make sure our Pokemon are all healthy so they can be ready to defend us."

"Well I'm feeling fine," said Meowth as he showed off his claws. "Anything attacks, we're ready to stop them!"

Pikachu and Eevee chirped in agreement, eliciting a chuckle from their trainers. Ash smiled, then looked at Meowth.

"Well, we care about you guys too, you know. We just want to be sure."

"Eh, I guess that's fair. As long as they don't stick any needles in me or anything."

"I doubt anything like that will happen," said Ash. The group then made their way towards the front desk, where Nurse Joy was waiting for them.

"Hello, and welcome to the Pokemon Center," she said.

"Why are you welcoming us just now?" Mikaela asked. "We've been here for a while."

"I haven't," Sam pointed out. "Also, I think it's just a courtesy thing."

"Yeah," said Ash, eager to move the conversation along. "Anyway, we'd like to get our Pokemon checked."

"I see," said Joy. "In that case, please hand me your-"

Before she could continue, the lights in the Pokemon Center went out.

"Who turned out the lights?" said Mikaela.

"I think there may be a blackout," Joy said as the emergency lights turned on. "Don't panic, this is something we're equipped to deal with."

"I don't know," said Meowth, "I'm getting a bad feeling out of all this."

As if to prove Meowth right, there was a sudden explosion in the roof. Then, the entire room was filled with thick black smoke.

"What's happening?!" Sam cried out.

"Oh dear, I was wrong!" Nurse Joy said in a worried tone. "This isn't a blackout! We're under attack!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh! What's going to happen to Ash and his two new friends?
> 
> ...Probably nothing too serious. it's way too early in the story for anything too major.
> 
> Ash's new travel partners are based on the two characters from the GOTCHA! music video. I don't know why, I guess I just liked them and wanted to use them somehow.
> 
> I also don't know why I went with Sam and Mikaela for their names. It just felt right.


	3. Team Rocket Attack!

The group did their best to protect themselves from the smoke as Nurse Joy and her Chansey jumped over the counter to protect them.

"Fantastic," Sam said in an irritated tone, "my first day on my journey and I'm already being attacked by bad guys."

"Pikachu, Pika."

"Don't worry," Nurse Joy said, standing in front of the young trainers with a determined gaze. "I won't let anything happen to you kids."

"Oh my," a female voice said, "what a brave lady. So willing to protect the young and vulnerable."

The group looked up towards the source of the smoke, seeing a pair of figures standing next to a pair of purple Pokemon.

"Who are you?" said Ash. "What do you want?"

"Oh? You really think you can make demands now?" a second, male voice replied. "Well, it would be rude not to introduce ourselves, I suppose."

The smoke then cleared from the immediate area, revealing a red haired woman and a blue haired man, both wearing white outfits with a bright pink "R" printed on.

"Prepare for trouble!"

"Make it double!"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

Then, to the surprise of the group, a Clefairy bounced out from behind them.

"Clefairy!"

"Team Rocket?" said Ash. "You mean the criminal organization that's always stealing Pokemon from people?"

"Come now," said James, "it's hardly fair to call us criminals. We're simply giving these Pokemon a chance to do something great by taking them away from unworthy owners who can hardly do anything good with their abilities."

"So basically, stealing Pokemon," said Mikaela. "That sounds like something criminals do."

"Eev-Eevee!" Eevee said in agreement.

"Yeah," Sam said as he held Pikachu close. "And there's no way we're letting you take our Pokemon!"

"Oh please," said Jessie, "why would we want to steal your Pokemon? They're clearly nothing worth taking."

"Hey!" Meowth yelled. "I'll let you know we're way stronger than anything you can throw at us!"

This caused the trio to stare in shock.

"Did that Meowth just talk?" said Jessie.

"That… is quite a rare sight," said James.

"And valuable!"

"Let's catch it!"

"Clefairy!"

"No way!" Ash said as he grabbed Meowth. "There's no way you're taking Meowth!"

"Oh really?" said Jessie. "And who's going to stop us?"

"I will!" said Nurse Joy. "I'll protect these young trainers from anything you try!"

"Chansey!"

"Why, how very noble," said James. "Too bad you won't have a chance!"

Before anyone could react, a pair of purple figures appeared and slammed against Chansey. The egg Pokemon cried out as she was sent flying into a wall.

"Chansey!" Nurse Joy cried as her partner slumped up against the wall unconscious. The rest of the group turned towards Team Rocket in anger.

"You jerks!" said Mikaela. "Chansey didn't get a chance to defend itself!"

"Well, you said we were criminals," said James. "So why shouldn't we act like it?"

"Well, we won't stand for that!" said Sam. "Pikachu! Attack!"

"You too, Eevee!"

"And you too, Meowth!"

"You got it!"

"Pika!"

"Eevee!"

"Fine, then we're doing this!" said Jessie. "Ekans, Wrap!"

"Koffing, Sludge!"

"Ekans!"

"Koffing!"

"Clefairy!"

The two groups rushed towards each other. Pikachu slammed into Ekans, shocking it with a Thunder Shock attack. Ekans yelped in pain, but it still managed to wrap its body around the electric rodent and squeeze it. While Pikachu cried out, it looked more annoyed than hurt, and it continued to zap the snake Pokemon.

Meanwhile, Eevee jumped up on top of Koffing, bouncing on top of it. The poison gas Pokemon tried to roll around to throw Eevee off, but it hung on tight, shaking around and causing Koffing to become more and more dizzy.

Finally, Meowth attempted to take on Clefairy. While he was slashing at her with a vicious Fury Swipes attack, the pink fairy type was surprisingly good at countering with her Double Slap attack. Each time he thought his claws would finally reach her, she managed to catch them in her paws. Thus Ash decided to change tactics.

"Meowth! Throw himself at Clefairy!"

"What?! Why?"

"I have an idea!"

Deciding to put his trust in Ash, Meowth did as he said and flung himself forwards. The fairy Pokemon had to cross both her arms to avoid getting hit, which caused her to lose sight of her opponent.

"Now hit it with your tail!"

Realizing what Ash was planning, Meowth flipped forwards and slammed his tail into Clefairy. The fairy Pokemon was stunned by the unexpected attack, which gave Meowth the opening he needed to unleash a flurry of Fury Swipes on her.

"Fairyyyy!"

"Haha!" Meowth laughed. "Take that, Pinkie!"

He then jumped back to catch his breath, keeping a wary eye on his opponent. Clefairy seemed to have taken some substantial damage, as her face and body were covered in scratches.

"You want any more?" said Meowth? "Cause if you want to take me or my friends, you're gonna have to go through-"

Before Meowth could say any more, Clefairy cried out, sending a massive wave of fairy type energy at him. However, it didn't just hit him; it also struck Pikachu and Eevee. They were all sent flying right into their trainers, knocking them off their feet and into a pile on the floor.

"Ah!" Ash said as he fell with Meowth. He groaned as Sam and Mikaela landed next to him.

"Did someone get the number of that truck?" Mikaela groaned.

The group winced as they looked up and saw Team Rocket smirking as they looked down on them.

"What a shame," said Jessie. "Your Pokemon are no match for us."

"And now we'll be taking them," said James. "Don't worry, we'll make sure two take good care of them!"

"Ekans!"

"Koffing"

"Clefairy!"

"No way…" said Ash. "We won't… let you… take our friends!"

Meowth gritted his teeth as he looked around. Neither Pikachu or Eevee looked like they could carry on for much longer (though Eevee still had the exact same smile on his face.) He wasn't sure what they could do to get out of this predicament. He tried to think of something, but it was hard with the pain in his body. Not to mention the smoke surrounding them.

Wait… smoke! That was it!

"Hey guys," he whispered as he looked to his new friends, "I think I got an idea. You up for it?"

"Pika pika," Pikachu muttered in an affirmative voice.

"Eevee vee!" Eevee cheered.

"Yeah, good," said Meowth. "Now, you see the gassy one?"

The two Pokemon looked over towards Koffing and nodded.

"Good," said Meowth. "Eevee, when I say so, we slam into him. Then, when we get away, Pikachu zaps 'em. Got it?"

"Eevee!"

"Pika!"

"Okay, what's going on?" said James. "What are you Pokemon planning?"

"Now!"

In the blink of an eye, Meowth and Eevee rushed forwards and rammed their bodies into Koffing with all the force they could muster. Koffing yelled out as it expelled a huge burst of gas, knocking the two normal types away. Just as Meowth intended.

"Now, Pikachu!"

Pikachu unleashed the strongest Thunder Shock it could at Koffing. The electric charge made contact with the gas and instantly ignited it.

"Uh oh," said Jessie.

The gas cloud exploded, blowing a huge hole in the roof of the Pokemon Center and sending Team Rocket flying. Ash and the rest of the gang had to hold onto each other as the shockwave hit them, and they were just barely able to avoid the worst of the blast.

After a moment, however, they were able to relax. Slowly, they got back up, taking in the scene. The entire lobby had been destroyed, the roof was gone, and there were flames everywhere. Most notably, Nurse Joy and Chansey were starting in shock.

Realizing what they had just done, Meowth's face turned red.

"Uh… sorry?"

* * *

Fortunately, Nurse Joy had assured them that they would not have held accountable for the damage done to the building. Even so, it was clear that the Pokemon Center wouldn't be operable for some time.

"Well, that sucks," said Ash.

"Yes it does," the police officer, a blue haired woman named Jenny, said as she observed the damages. "Still, you should consider yourselves lucky that you managed to protect yourselves from a criminal organization like Team Rocket when you're no more than beginner level trainers."

"Are we really lucky?" said Sam. "We got attacked by Team Rocket."

"That is a fair point," said Officer Jenny. "Anyway, I'd advise you to try to stay as far away from them as possible. Team Rocket is not an organization that young trainers like you should be involved with."

"Don't worry, Officer," said Ash, "we don't plan on repeating that any time soon."

"Good," Officer Jenny said as she got back onto her motorcycle. "You kids stay out of trouble now."

As Jenny drove off, the gang turned back to the Pokemon Center.

"Well, there goes my plans for the night," said Ash.

"Oh yeah," said Sam. "I guess you don't have a place to stay now."

"Or eat," said Meowth as he clutched his belly. "Aw man, I'm so hungry."

Mikaela looked at the two, saddened by their sudden predicament. Then, her face lit up.

"Ooh! That means sleepover time!"

"Eevee!"

The boys turned towards her in surprise.

"Sleepover?"

* * *

"So Eevee ended up with Sam all day looking for me and Pikachu!"

Ash and Sam watched as Mikaela described the events that had led her to Ash and Sam. While they had all agreed that telling anyone about their encounter with Team Rocket would most likely not be a good idea, they didn't see the harm in talking about how they had met.

"So then Pikachu and I walked all around until we reached the gym. Then we saw Ash and Meowth talking to each other! And I was like whaaat? A talking Pokemon?!"

"A talking Pokemon?!" said Mikaela's sister, a little girl with messy red hair named Mairin. "For real?!"

"What can I say?" said Meowth. "I'm one of a kind."

Mikaela's family gasped in awe as they stared at Meowth.

"Yeah, I know," said Mikaela. "Anyway, Ash and Meowth met Sam first, so when they found us, Eevee and I finally found each other! Then we decided to all travel together!"

"That's wonderful," said Mikaela's mother. "It's great to travel with friends."

"That's true," said Mikaela's father. "That way you'll always have someone to have your back when you need them, and you can share all the fun you're having with others!"

"Yeah!" Mairin said as she grabbed Meowth and began to hug him. "And you get to travel with a talking Pokemon! That's so cool!"

"Thanks!" Meowth gasped as the redhead squeezed him. "Now lemme go! I need air!"

"She sure is a handful, isn't she?" Ash commented as he watched his starter struggle.

"Sometimes," Mikaela admitted. "But I'll bet you she'll make an awesome trainer one day."

"As long as she doesn't strangle them," said Sam.

Fortunately, Mairin soon let go of Meowth, who gasped as he rushed away. In his place, Eevee jumped in, eagerly letting his trainer's sister hug him.

"I'm gonna miss you guys," she said, now somewhat teary-eyed.

"Don't worry," Mikaela said as she walked over and hugged her. "I'll call you, and I'll come to visit whenever I get the chance!"

"Promise?" said Mairin.

"Promise."

"Ev-eevee!"

"Okay!" said Mairin. "But I still want to go with you on a journey one day!"

"Of course! We'll all go together!"

"Eevee!"

Meowth crawled up to Ash's shoulder and groaned.

"I hope not, I think that girl busted one of my ribs when she hugged me."

"Don't worry," said Ash, "Mairin won't be a trainer for at least a couple of years."

Fortunately, any further discussion was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Oh, would you look at that?" said Mikaela's mother. "The pizza arrived."

The entire group cheered.

* * *

After dinner, the gang huddled together in Mikaela's room. They were sharing their thoughts and hopes for their journey together.

"I want to be the very best, like no one ever was," said Ash. "So I decided that I was going to travel to every Gym and collect all the badges in Kanto. Then I'll take part in the Pokemon League, then challenge the Elite Four and become a Champion!"

"That's a pretty ambitious goal," said Sam. "Still, I think you'll be pretty good at it."

"You'd better believe it," said Meowth, "Ash here is gonna beat every challenge!"

"Cool!" said Mikaela. "I can't wait to see that!"

Ash grinned at the encouragement his new friends were giving him.

"So what about you guys?" he said, his voice full of curiosity. "I mean, you probably have some kind of dream you want to follow, right?"

"Oh yeah!" said Mikaela. "I want to become a Pokemon Breeder!"

The rest of the group looked at her in surprise.

"A Pokemon Breeder?" said Meowth. "I sure didn't think that looking at you."

"Yeah," said Sam. "You look like you want to do something more… fun."

"Pika-Pikachu."

"But breeding is fun!" said Mikaela. "You get to find out everything Pokemon like, experience what they feel and how they think, and truly understand them as beings!"

"Eve-Eevee!"

"I guess so," said Ash. "That kind of sounds fun, now that I think about it!"

"Yeah," said Meowth. "Though you won't need a breeder to figure out what I want!"

The gang laughed at this, imagining the reaction any Pokemon Breeder would have to seeing a talking Pokemon. As it died down, the rest of the group looked at Sam.

"What about you, Sam?" said Mikaela. "What are you trying to do?"

Sam blinked, then looked down at Pikachu.

"Pika?" Pikachu said, as if telling him to answer.

"Well," said Sam, "I really didn't expect to start my journey so soon, but I always wanted to join the G-Men."

"The G-Men?" said Ash. "Like, the guys who go around helping Pokemon and stopping bad guys?"

"That sounds really cool," said Mikaela. "Also, you could help out next time Team Rocket attacks us!"

"Why do you think we're going to be attacked again?" said Sam.

"I sure hope they don't," said Meowth. "I don't want them to capture me and sell me on the black market!"

"Me neither," Ash said as he hugged his starter. "Don't worry. I won't let them go anywhere near you, buddy."

"Aw, thanks Ash!"

"Anyway," said Sam, "I want to be able to make a difference in the lives of other people and Pokemon. And I feel that joining the G-Men would help me do that."

"Pika, Pikachu," Pikachu said in his typically unenthusiastic voice, though he also raised a thumb in approval.

"That sounds really," said Ash. "I think you'll be great!"

"Me too!" said Meowth.

"Yeah," said Mikaela, "you'll be awesome!"

"Eevee!"

"Thanks guys," said Sam. "We'll all work together to make our dreams come true, right?"

"Yeah!"

With a newfound level of determination, the group continued to chat with each other, talking about what they wanted to do and see on their journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure what Pokemon partner to give to Jessie and James. I could have given Pikachu to them, but since I was including the Gotcha! trainers, it would have been redundant to have two of them. I eventually settled on Clefairy since it was originally going to be Ash's partner before they chose Pikachu.


	4. Pokemon Catching in Viridian Forest

As the sun shined above, the gang made their way out of the city, heading towards Viridian forest. Ash and Meowth were particularly excited to see the forest and everything it had to offer.

"Man, isn't it exciting to be here in Viridian forest?" said Ash.

"You betcha," said Meowth. "I can't wait to find some new friends to train with!"

"Yeah," said Sam, "this forest has a lot of Pokemon. Granted, most of them are bug types, but you could still get a lot of new teammates here.

"That sounds like a lot of fun!" said Mikaela. "What do you think, Eevee?"

"Eevee!" Eevee said in approval.

"Well, we'll see what we can find," said Ash. "I sure hope we find some cool teammates, though!"

"You betcha we'll find something," said Meowth, "it's just a matter of finding them!"

The two nodded in agreement as they moved forwards. The woods steadily became thicker as they moved further inwards, but it never got to the point that it was too thick to move through. Ash idly thought back to a forest he had heard of from the distant Galar region, where the trees were so thick that one could barely see any sunlight, and most of the illumination was provided by strange glowing mushrooms. It was apparently infested with fairy type Pokemon, who had a tendency of leading travelers astray, never to be heard from again.

He shuddered at the thought, and was thankful that Viridian forest just had bug types.

"Hey, look at that!" Meowth said, pulling him away from his thoughts. As he looked in the direction his starter was pointing, his eyes widening in excitement.

"Hey, it's a Caterpie!" he said as he pulled out his Pokedex.

" _Caterpie, the Worm Pokemon. Caterpie's short feet are tipped with suction pads that enable it to tirelessly climb slopes and walls._ "

"Ooh," said Mikaela, "are you gonna catch it?"

"Oh yeah!" Ash said as he grabbed a Pokeball. "And I have just the Pokemon for the job."

He then flung the Pokeball out, letting out his Spearow.

"Good idea," said Sam. "Flying types are really strong against bug types."

They then watched in shock as Spearow grabbed Caterpie and attempted to swallow it whole.

"Caterpiiiie!"

"Spearow!" Ash yelled. "I can't catch Caterpie if you eat it!"

The tiny bird Pokemon looked up in surprise, the horrified bug type still struggling in her beak. Disappointed, she spat it out, pecking it in frustration.

"I mean… I guess that works?" said Ash as he grabbed an empty Pokeball. He then tossed it at the injured bug type, who was sucked in immediately. After a few seconds, the ball let out a couple of sparks, indicating a successful catch.

"Well," he said, "At least we caught it?"

"Hey, that works for me," said Meowth. "Catch number two!"

"Yeah!" said Ash. "Isn't that exciting, Spearow?"

Spearow huffed, seemingly disappointed at not getting to eat the bug type. Sighing in amusement, Ash decided to let Caterpie out of the ball.

"Hey, Caterpie," said Ash as he bent down to greet the worm Pokemon, "my name is Ash, and I'm your new trainer. Aren't you excited?"

Caterpie looked up at the boy curiously for a moment. He then looked over at Spearow, and a panicked look formed on his face.

"Don't worry," said Ash. "She's not going to eat you."

The tiny bird Pokemon rolled her eyes, clearly still hungry. However, she nodded and acknowledged her trainer's words. Caterpie wasn't entirely confident, but he decided to trust Ash's words. He then jumped up onto his new trainer's hand and slowly crawled up onto the boy's shoulder.

"Great!" said Ash. "Guess we're a team now!"

Caterpie cried out happily, then looked up at Ash's companions.

"That was pretty neat," said Sam.

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "Too bad Spearow tried to eat him, though."

"Well, yeah," said Ash. "She's a flying type, and flying types often like to eat bug types."

"Oh, yeah," said Mikaela. "That would make things kind of awkward, though. Kind of like if one of us was made of cheeseburgers."

The rest of the group stared at her.

"Well… yeah, I guess," said Sam. "Not the exact phrase I would have used, but it works."

* * *

The gang was gathered around the table, where Mikaela had just set a big pot of stew. Ash and Sam were rather surprised when the brunette had offered to cook for them, but they were happy to get something other than pre-packaged sandwiches to eat.

"Here you go, guys!" Mikaela said with a smile on her face. Ash and Sam looked at the pot eagerly, only to be knocked over when their Pokemon rushed over to eat.

"Oh yeah!" Meowth said as he reached for a fork.

"Spearow!"

"Caterpiiie!"

"Pika."

The trainers watched as the Pokemon began to dig in. As they did, however, Ash noticed something rather unusual.

"Hey, Mikaela? Why isn't Eevee eating too?"

Mikaela looked down at her starter, seemingly confused.

"What's wrong, buddy?" she asked. "Aren't you hungry?"

"Vee!" the smiling normal type said, a large drop of sweat rolling down his cheek.

"Is it just me, or does Eevee really not want to eat Mikaela's cooking?" said Ash.

"Yeah," said Sam. "I have a bad feeling about this."

As if on due, the other Pokemon rushed away from the table towards the bushes. As they vanished behind the greenery, their trainers could hear the sound of retching, leading Ash and Sam to glance at each other nervously.

"What did you put in that stew?" said Ash, a drop of sweat rolling down his forehead.

"Oh, a little bit of everything!" said Mikaela with a hint of pride. "I think it turned out pretty good!"

Sam raised an eyebrow at the girl's explanation, then turned to look at the stew. Curious, he grabbed a spoon and dipped it into the pot. He then took a taste.

He immediately wished he hadn't done so.

"Man," Mikaela said as she watched Sam rush off towards the bushes. "Some people just have no appreciation for fine cuisine."

Ash stared at her, unsure of how to respond. In the end, however, he decided he would stick to the pre-packaged sandwiches.

* * *

"Ugh," Meowth said as he held a bottle of water in his paws, "I really should have just stuck to the Pokemon food."

His fellow Pokemon groaned in agreement as they took in small sips of water.

"Well," said Ash, "at least you tried something new, right?"

"Oh, that was something new, alright," said Sam, who still looked somewhat green. "I think I'll stick with the old, thank you very much."

Off to the side, Mikaela grumbled to herself. Ash couldn't quite make out what she was saying, but he could hear something about ungratefulness being mentioned.

* * *

Fortunately, by the time the gang was about to go to bed, everyone was feeling much better. As the three humans got into their sleeping bags, their Pokemon snuggled next to them.

"Well, I know that this wasn't the best day we could have had," said Ash. "But at least we got a new partner, right guys?"

"Yeah, we did," Meowth said as he glanced at Caterpie. "And you're gonna be great on our team, buddy!"

"Cat! Caterpie!"

Spearow grunted, still disappointed that she wasn't allowed to eat her newest teammate. That stew the brown haired girl had made was the worst thing she'd ever eaten, and she'd eaten bugs covered in mud and… other things.

"Well, I think it was pretty great," said Mikaela. "We took our first step on our journey to make our dreams come true!"

"Eevee!"

"Sure," muttered Sam, "as long as you don't end up ending that journey."

"What was that?"

"Nothing!"

"Pikachu."

Ash couldn't help but chuckle. He then yawned as he retreated into the bag.

"Well, I'm going to sleep. Good night guys."

"Night," said Meowth."

"Sleep tight," said Sam.

"Don't let the bug types bite," said Mikaela.

The group then slowly drifted off to sleep. Or, at least, they tried to.

"Cat?"

Meowth poked an eye open and spotted Caterpie sitting on a tree stump, looking upwards towards the moon. He slowly got up, curious as to what the little bug type was thinking.

"Yo, Caterpie," he said as he approached the stump. "What's up?"

Surprised, the worm Pokemon turned to him.

"Caterpie Cat?"

"I saw you looking kinda melancholy," said Meowth. "You alright?"

Caterpie seemed slightly apprehensive about speaking with his new teammate, but he still was willing to share some of his thoughts.

"Cat, Caterpie," the bug said, explaining how he'd never expected to be caught by a trainer.

"Yeah, I don't think any of us saw it coming," said Meowth. "Right Spearow?"

The bug type's eye widened, and he turned around and saw the tiny bird Pokemon next to him. He very nearly freaked out, but Meowth placed a reassuring paw on him.

"Don't worry," Meowth said, "she won't eat you. Ash made sure of that."

Spearow rolled her eyes. It was rather irritating that her trainer's newest catch was something so appetizing, but she was unwilling to incur his wrath, so she would show restraint.

"But we all want to get strong, right?" said Meowth. "We can get pretty strong in the wild, but everyone knows you can only go so far. Trainers can be annoying, but they help us reach far beyond our natural limits. So why don't we all give Ash a chance?"

Caterpie was silent for a moment, considering what Meowth was saying. He had always longed to reach his final stage, to be able to fly effortlessly, just as his parents could. And yet, he was bound to the ground, barely stronger than when he hatched, and nowhere near his evolution. Heck, he'd almost been eaten, only able to avoid an untimely demise due to the fact that the bird who tried to eat him had been forbidden to do so be Ash.

Speaking of which, the flying type in question was perilously close, and he was really hoping that she was obedient enough to not try any funny business while their trainer was asleep.

But that was just another reason to join Ash's team. Not only could he help Caterpie become stronger, he could offer protection against the many dangerous flying types that would no doubt be lurking throughout the region. And while the food wasn't always the best, there was at least plenty of it!

As long as the brown haired girl wasn't the one cooking, it was a very appealing proposition.

"Cat! Caterpie!" Caterpie said with an enthusiastic tone.

"I knew you'd love the idea!" said Meowth. "We're gonna be such an awesome team!"

"Caterpie! Caterpie!"

"Spearow, Spear!"

The three Pokemon cheered together as they vowed to become stronger together.

* * *

The next morning, Ash and his Pokemon stood in a circle as they prepared to start their training.

"Okay, guys," said Ash, "we have a pretty tough road ahead of us. The Pokemon League is full of really strong trainers and Pokemon. And before we can get anywhere near there, we need to beat eight really tough trainers called Gym Leaders. So we need to get really strong to stand a chance. So who's with me?"

"All of us!" Meowth said with determination. "There's no way we're giving up!"

"Caterpie!"

"Row, Spearow!"

"That's what I like to hear," said Ash. "So let's get going! Meowth, I want to see you practice your Scratch on that tree over there. Caterpie, try using String Shot on those bushes. And Spearow, I want you to use Peck on the branches and try to see how many you can knock off. Got that?"

The group chirped in excitement, determined to be the best. Immediately, Meowth began to slash at the tree, leaving several deep claw marks in the bark. Above him, Spearow flew through the branches, pecking at them with as much force as she could muster, and managing to break a few of the smaller ones. And down below, Caterpie did his best to spin his silky string onto the branches until they were thoroughly coated.

"Okay guys, let's rest for a moment."

The three Pokemon stopped and rushed up to Ash, looking up at him as they caught their breath. The Raven haired trainer surveyed the area, taking note of the broken branches, as well as the scratched tree and string wrapped bushes.

"Not bad," he said, happy to see what his team was capable of. "But you can't just expect your opponent to take those attacks without fighting back. So I want to see you guys try something a bit harder."

He pointed at Caterpie, then to a short distance away, indicating where he needed to go. He then pointed at Meowth.

"Alright. Caterpie, I want you to try to wrap up Meowth."

"You want him to what?!"

"And you, Meowth, need to use your Fury Swipes to prevent yourself from being wrapped up."

"Oh," said Meowth, now less worried than before. "Alright, I guess. So, I just need to avoid getting wrapped up?"

"Yeah," said Ash. "We'll see how long you last."

"Okay then," said Meowth. "Come at me, wormy!"

Grunting with determination, Caterpie unleashed a flurry of string. Meowth cried out as he slashed furiously, cutting the strings into pieces. For a moment, he managed to keep up the pace and avoid getting tied up. However, as he slashed, string began to build up in his claws, and they slowly lost their cutting edge.

"Uh, this is getting a bit hard!" Meowth cried out as his arms got wrapped up by string, followed by the rest of his body.

"Okay, Caterpie! Stop now!"

The bug type immediately cancelled its attack, then looked on at what had happened. Meowth was now completely covered in silky thread, his limbs stuck right next to his body.

"Uh," said Ash, "Sorry?"

Meowth tried to speak, but his face was covered up, preventing him from saying anything. Caterpie seemed embarrassed, and was trying to look away. Spearow rolled her eyes and pecked at Meowth, releasing him from the string.

"Ugh!" Meowth said as he shook himself free. "Can we not try that again?"

* * *

Thankfully for Meowth, it was soon time for breakfast, and the group was able to take a breather to eat.

"Not bad," said Ash as he munched on a breakfast bar. "Definitely not the best food I've ever eaten, though."

"You know," said Mikaela, "I could always make something a lot better."

"NO!" Ash, Sam, and Meowth said quickly, causing the girl to pout.

"You guys are no fun."

"Eev-Eevee!" Eevee said happily.

"See, guys? Eevee gets it!"

Pikachu stared at the evolution Pokemon, wondering how he could always have that dumb smile on his face even when his trainer was offering potentially lethal food mixes. Was the smile just frozen on his face?

Honestly, though, Ash's Pokemon weren't really normal either. There was the talking Meowth, (honestly, what kind of Pokemon even talked?) the grumpy Spearow, (though to be fair, he'd be pretty grumpy too if he was forbidden from eating his favorite food,) and the Caterpie who was currently being carried off by a Pidgeotto…

Wait, what?

"Piiiiiieee!" Caterpie cried as it struggled to escape the clutches of the flying type.

"Caterpie!" Ash yelled. "Spearow! Get him!"

"Spear!" Spearow yelled as she took off. With a burst of speed, she caught up to the bird Pokemon and unleashed a Fury Attack, causing it to drop Caterpie in shock.

"Caaaat!" the bug type cried as he dropped towards the ground. Fortunately, Ash rushed forwards and caught him before he could land.

"I got you!"

Meanwhile, Pidgeotto and Spearow were struggling up in the sky. While Spearow was fighting valiantly, she was struggling to keep the larger flying type at bay. To make matters worse, Pidgeotto was clearly angry at the loss of its meal, and was taking out much of its frustration on the smaller bird.

"Spearow!" Ash called out, concerned for the safety of his Pokemon.

"We need to do something!" said Mikaela.

"I got it!" said Sam. "Pikachu! Thundershock!"

"Pika!" Pikachu yelled as it let loose a burst of electricity upwards, hitting the larger bird. Pidgeotto cried out in pain as it fell, and Sam decided to take advantage of it.

"I got this!" he said as he grabbed an empty pokeball. "Go, pokeball!"

He flung it at the bird Pokemon, who was sucked in instantly. The ball landed on the ground, where it shook three times before shooting out sparks, indicating a successful catch.

"Oh yeah!" Sam said as he held up the ball. "I just caught my first Pokemon!"

"Pika, Pikachu."

"Alright!" said Mikaela. "That was awesome!"

"Yeah," said Ash, "not to mention that Caterpie is safe now!"

"Caterpie!"

"Spear," Spearow huffed, feeling that she deserved most of the credit for getting Pidgeotto to drop the worm in the first place. Still, she supposed she was thankful towards Sam and Pikachu for getting the big bird away from her.

"Thanks guys," said Sam as he put the ball away. "Gotta say, it's pretty awesome to catch my own pokemon."

"Yeah, it is," said Ash. "I had a lot of fun when I caught Spearow and Caterpie."

"Aw," said Mikaela, "Now I'm the only one who hasn't caught a Pokemon yet."

Ash shrugged at this, then noticed something squirming behind a tree.

"Well, I think you might get a chance now."

The brown haired girl blinked, then turned around. She then noticed a group of Weedle crawling around, seemingly searching for food.

"Oh my gosh, that's perfect!" she said with a huge grin. "Let's get 'em, Eevee!"

"Ev-Eevee!" said her starter as they both rushed off. The group of Weedle quickly noticed them, and immediately began to panic.

"Weedle!" they cried as they began to crawl away. However, one of them was not as attentive as the others, and didn't notice the newcomers until it was too late.

"Use tackle!"

The hairy Pokemon was knocked back as it was hit by Eevee. It quickly recovered, however, and fired off a Poison Sting attack.

"Dodge it!"

"Eevee!" the normal type said as he bounced upwards, avoiding the poison type attack. He then tackled Weedle again, knocking it back once again.

"Okay," she said as she grabbed a pokeball. "Let's do this! Pokeball go!"

She then tossed the ball, which sucked Weedle in before landing. After a few shakes, it let off a few sparks of its own.

"I did it!" Mikaela said as she held up the ball. "I caught my very own Pokemon!"

"Eevee Eevee!"

"That's awesome!" said Sam. "You did great!"

"Pika."

"Yeah," said Ash. "Now we all caught our own Pokemon!"

"And that means we're all even closer to our dreams!" said Meowth.

"Caterpie!"

"Weedle!"

Mikaela grinned as she looked down at the pokeball that now contained her very first catch. She knew that it would be a long road to becoming the best Pokemon breeder, but she felt that she had taken her first step in that direction.

There was nothing in the world that could ruin this moment.

"Hey, what's that noise?" said Sam.

The rest of the group looked at him in surprise. They then turned their heads, listening closely.

"It sounds like buzzing," said Ash.

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "And it's getting closer."

Meowth then felt a chill crawl up his spine.

"Hey, Mikaela?" he asked. "Wasn't there a bunch of other Weedle with yours?"

"Oh yeah," said Mikaela. "There was. Why?"

"Well, where did they go?"

They then looked up, and saw a mass of yellow and black rushing straight towards them.

"They went to call their buddies!" said Ash

"They're coming for us!" said Sam. "Run!"

The group then ran off, with a huge swarm of Beedrill in hot pursuit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, looks like our heroes are doing pretty well as they begin their journey. I mean, they all managed to catch a new partner today!
> 
> Oh yeah, and they made some Pokemon angry. Oh well, guess you can't get everything right all the time.


	5. A Savior in Viridian Forest

Deep within Viridian Forest, a certain trio was up to no good.

"So, do you think those twerps are in here?" said Jessie.

"Without a doubt," said James. "And once they cross our path, we'll ambush them and steal their Pokemon!"

"Clefairy, fairy!"

"Well, I can certainly get behind that plan!" said Jessie. "I can't wait for the boss to reward us!"

"I know," said James, "and I can't wait to see the look on the faces of those twerps!"

As if on cue, they heard a number of screams.

"Did you hear that?" Jessie said as she turned in the direction of the house.

"I did," said James. "That almost sounded like the twerps."

"Fairy, fairy."

The trio was then shocked as they saw Ash and his friends rush past them.

"Hey!" said Jessie. "What's the big idea running away before we can ambush you?!"

"Come back here!" James yelled. "You need to give us a chance to take your Pokemon!"

"Clefairy! Fairy!"

The trio then felt chills when they heard a buzzing noise. They turned around, and their eyes widened at the sight of the incoming Beedrill swarm.

"RUN!"

The trio ran off as the angry bug types chased them.

* * *

Was that Team Rocket?" said Mikaela.

"Who cares?!" Meowth said as he kept running. "Let Beedrill have them!"

The group was getting tired, but they kept running, not wishing to experience the wrath of the Beedrill. Unfortunately, there was trouble ahead.

"Watch out!"

Ash's eyes widened at the sight of a huge log right in their path. He stopped right in front of it, as did his friends. Realizing they had nowhere else to go, they began to panic.

"What do we do now?!" said Sam.

"Maybe we can go down there," Mikaela said as she looked down at the log. "I think we could squeeze through there."

Ash looked down, and saw that there was indeed a small opening beneath the log.

"Maybe," he said, "if we had just a bit of time."

"Yeah," said Meowth, "but I don't think we have that!"

The group watched in horror as the Beedrill finally began to close in on them. With the log blocking their route, and no other way out, things seemed bleak.

But before the bug type swarm could reach them, something unexpected happened.

" _Vayanse a volar!_ "

To their surprise, a large brown bedsheet suddenly appeared between the two groups. Ash and his friends were stunned at this, but the Beedrill were clearly even more stunned. They attempted to sting at the fabric, but they weren't able to get past it.

Confused, Ash looked around, trying to see what was going on and who had saved them. He then found it as he looked behind him; standing atop the log was a boy holding a fishing rod, one that was attached to the sheet.

"What are you waiting for?! Move!"

Ash blinked, but quickly snapped back into action. Thinking quickly, he grabbed Meowth and shoved him down the hole. The other trainers followed suit, shoving their Pokemon down the hole. Then, Mikaela shoved her backpack in, and then squeezed her body into the hole.

"Hurry!" the mystery boy said. "I can't hold them off forever!"

Not willing to waste time, Ash immediately began making his way down the hole. As his friend went down, Sam turned back, and saw that the swarm was punching some very noticeable holes in the sheet.

"Coming through!" Sam yelled as he dived down the hole. He did his best to squeeze through the tight opening, and finally landed next to the rest of his friends.

"Please tell me next time you do something like that," Meowth groaned from the bottom of the pile.

"Well, I think it was fun," said Mikaela. "Right, Eevee?"

"Eevee!" the normal type said, clearly enjoying the situation far more than the others. Pikachu simply rolled his eyes at this.

As Ash chuckled at the display, he heard the sound of someone sliding down towards them. He was then met by the sight of their savior landing next to them.

"Don't make any noise!" the boy said in a hushed tone.

The gang closed their mouths as the buzzing sound grew louder and louder. They then watched as the swarm flew above them, seemingly oblivious to them hiding beneath the log. They held their breath as the bug types flew into the distance, still trying to find them.

As the Beedrill faded into the distance, Ash let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks," he said as he got up. "You really saved us there."

"You're welcome," the boy replied. "I don't know what you did to make those Beedrill angry, but you really should try not to do it again."

The raven haired trainer blinked. There was something about the boy's voice that was familiar. While it wasn't common, he knew he had heard that accent before. And not too long ago, either.

His eyes then widened as he recognized him.

"Wait… I remember you!"

The others looked up at him, surprised by the declaration. The newcomer, on the other hand, had a more pensive look on his face.

"Yeah," said Ash. "You helped me find the gym!"

"Oh yeah!" the boy said, recalling Ash's request for information. "Did you have any luck with Giovanni?"

"No," said Ash. "The gym was closed."

"Oh," the boy replied. "Lucky you. He would have beaten you up pretty bad."

"I still think I could have taken him."

Sam and Mikaela looked at the boy with curiosity. He seemed to be somewhat younger than Ash, although that might just be because he was rather short; he certainly sounded old enough to be a trainer. His short blonde hair was covered up by a large straw hat, and he had brown eyes that seemed full of excitement. He was wearing a brown shirt and shorts, and somewhat worn out sandals. Finally, he was holding a fishing rod, which was clearly attached to the bedsheet he had used to distract the Beedrill.

"So, are we safe now?" said Ash.

" _Por ahora_ , maybe," the boy replied as he began to fold up the sheet. "But those Beedrill will be back sooner or later. You should find shelter."

"Where?" said Sam. "We're in a forest, so it's not like there are a lot of places for us to hide."

"Why don't you come with me?" the boy offered. "I live nearby."

"You live in the forest?" said Mikaela.

"Yeah, me and my uncle David have a house in the forest. If you want you can hide there until the bugs leave."

"Well that works for me!" said Meowth. "Let's get going!"

The boy stared at Meowth for a moment. Before he could comment, Ash decided to chime in.

"Yeah, Meowth can talk. It's weird, but just roll with it."

"I… okay," the boy said as he collapsed his fishing rod and put it away. "Well, I guess we should get going. This way!"

The boy then began to walk off, with Ash and his friends following closely.

* * *

"So, do you guys think we'll be safe in this guy's house?"

After a short while following their new acquaintance, the gang was beginning to wonder if his house was the best place to hide from the bug types.

"Well," said Ash, "it's not like we have a better plan."

"Yeah, I know," said Mikaela. "But, like, he's living in the middle of the forest. Like, how do we know it's not just a shack or something?

"Veevee!"

"I mean, a shack would still be better than nothing," said Sam. "At least we'll have something between us and those bugs."

"Pika."

"But what if there are so many of them that their weight causes the shack to collapse on top of us? Or their stingers punch so many holes in the wall that it falls out and they just swarm in?"

Before anyone could respond, the boy spoke up.

"We're almost there! Look!"

The gang looked up at the boy's remark. There, a short distance away, was a small log cabin.

"Huh," said Mikaela. "That's not too bad."

"Yeah," said Meowth. "And no Beedrill in sight!"

Just as he said this, they were greeted by a familiar buzzing sound.

"You were saying?" Ash deadpanned.

"They're coming!" said Sam. "Run!"

The group began to run as fast as they could. Behind them, a huge mass of yellow bugs flew towards them, their red eyes focused on them.

"They're getting closer!" said Ash.

"Keep going," said Meowth, "we're almost there!"

Unfortunately, his leg got caught on a root, tripping him up

"Meowth!" Ash yelled. He stopped and turned around, ready to rescue his partner. Before he could do so, however, the mystery boy jumped past him.

" _Yo lo agarro_! You run!"

Ash watched in amazement as the boy took out his fishing rod and flung it forwards. The scratch cat Pokemon was caught and reeled in just before the horde could reach them.

"Agh!" Meowth said as the boy caught him in his arms. "What did you do that for?! I'm not a catfish!"

"Oh come on, Meowth!" said Ash. "At least you're safe now!"

Up ahead, they could see that their friends had already gotten to the cabin, and we're holding the door open for them.

"Hurry!" Sam called out.

You're almost there!" yelled Mikaela.

The two boys began to run even harder, while the Beedrill got closer with each second.

"Watch out!" Meowth said as one of them flew close enough to touch. As it swiped its arm at them, the boy was forced to duck. Fortunately, the attack didn't manage to hit him; however, his straw hat was knocked off.

"They're gonna get us!" Meowth screamed.

"Not today!" Ash said as they finally reached the house. The three of them jumped inside, then Sam and Mikaela slammed the door shut. The swarm attempted to force their way in, but the door held firm.

"We… did it," Ash gasped as he sat on the floor and tried to catch his breath. Around him, he saw the rest of his friends do the same, exhausted after having to outrun the berserk bug type horde. As terrifying as it had been, they were at least safe now.

Smiling, he turned towards their new friend, the boy who had saved them.

It was then that he noticed something odd.

"Wow, you… have really long hair."

His friends looked up in surprise. Without the hat, they could now see that his blond hair was much longer than it had initially appeared; indeed, it was tied up into a ponytail, one that had most likely been wrapped up and hidden under the hat.

"Is there something wrong with my hair?" he asked.

"No, that's not what we meant," Meowth said quickly. "It's just… it kinda makes you look like a girl, or something."

"So? I am a girl, you know."

The rest of the group stared in silence, their eyes opening wide.

" **You're a girl?!** "

The boy - girl - tilted her head in confusion.

"What? Did you think I was a boy?"

Ash and the rest of his friends tried to answer, but didn't know what to say. Fortunately, before they were able to embarrass themselves, an unknown voice made itself known.

"Maria? Is that you?"

The blonde girl grinned as she got up and rushed to the source of the voice.

" _Tio_!" she said as she hugged him. "You won't believe what just happened!"

"What… who are they, _Mija_?"

The gang looked up at the newcomer. He was a rather stocky, short man with black hair that was mostly hidden under a blue cap. He was wearing a blue fishing vest over a black shirt, white pants, and blue boots. While he seemed surprised at their presence, he didn't seem to be hostile. If anything, he seemed somewhat protective of the girl.

"It's okay, _Tio David_ ," she said, quickly reassuring him. "I found them being chased by some Beedrill, so I brought them here so they could hide until they called down."

"Beedrill?!" the man said in shock. "Are you okay, _Mija_?"

"I'm okay, _Tio_ ," the girl replied. "But I had to do something, right? I couldn't let them get hurt!"

The man sighed, then smiled at his niece.

"You're so _cariñosa_ , Maria. I just hope it doesn't get you hurt one day."

The two relaxed in each other's arms, enjoying each other's company. They then broke off to look at the newcomers.

"Well, I certainly didn't expect guests," the man said. "But if my niece says you can stay here until those bichos go away, that's good enough for me."

"I… guess that's good," said Ash. "Thank you for letting us stay here, sir."

"You're welcome," the man said. "And please, call me David. David Bosqueverde. And, I believe you've met my niece, Maria Bosqueverde."

" _Hola_!" said Maria.

"It's nice to meet you both," said Ash. "My name is Ash, and this is Meowth."

"Hey there!"

David blinked, but Ash cut him off before he could comment.

"Yeah, he can do that. You just have to get used to it."

"I see," said David.

"Yeah," said Sam. "Anyway, I'm Sam, and this is Pikachu."

"Pika pika."

"And I'm Mikaela!" said Mikaela. "This is my buddy, Eevee."

"Eev-Eevee!"

"It's nice to meet you all," said David. "I know our home is muy humilde, but I hope you'll feel comfortable here until those Beedrill get tired of chasing you."

"Don't worry, it looks really comfy," said Mikaela. "It sure beats being stuck in some shack in the middle of nowhere!"

Ash and his friends laughed at this, while the two forest dwellers stared in confusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just FYI, David's name is pronounced Dah-veed, as is would be in Spanish.


	6. New Friends in Viridian Forest

Ash looked around in fascination at the cabin. While it wasn't too big, it was more than cozy enough for a small family, such as their new friend and her uncle. It was somewhat surprising that they had a house like this all the way out here in the woods. Or that they even lived out here.

"So, you live here, huh?" he asked almost absentmindedly.

"Yeah," said Maria. "I've lived here with my uncle for as long as I can remember."

"Really? You've always been here?"

"My whole life. I mean, sometimes me and my uncle go to Viridian City to buy stuff, but I've never gone anywhere else."

"Well, have you ever wanted to go somewhere else?"

Maria paused for a moment, Ash turned to look at her, and was surprised to see that she almost seemed sad.

"Yeah," she said finally. "I've always wanted to see more of the world, and I really want to meet a lot of different Pokemon! It would be so amazing to do all of that!"

"Yeah, I know," said Ash. "That's why I decided to go on my journey. I wanted to meet different Pokemon and trainers, so I could learn and grow, and maybe one day become a Pokemon master!"

"Pokemon Master, huh?" Maria said with an amused tone. "You're going to have to train a lot to get there!"

The two of them laughed for a moment, before Ash thought about something.

"So, why don't you go on a journey of your own?"

Maria stopped laughing.

"Wha- No! I can't!"

Ash looked at her in confusion.

"Why not? I mean, you've never gone out, and you want to see the world, so it sounds like it would be great, right?"

"It might… but I can't leave my uncle! I'm the only one who's there for him!"

"Oh."

Ash looked back at David, who was currently helping Sam and Mikaela settle in. As he did, he realized that there was something missing. Or rather, some _one_.

"Hey, where are your parents?"

For a moment, Maria didn't respond, but Ash could see that she seemed... sad.

"Oh," he said quietly. "I… I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"It's okay," Maria said quickly, cutting him off. "I don't even remember them, so it's not like I miss them or anything."

"Oh."

"Yeah," said Maria. "Like I said, I've lived with my uncle for as long as I can remember. I don't think about my parents that much, really. I asked _Tio David_ about them once, but he just told me he'll tell me later. I think it made him sad, though."

Ash frowned. The blonde girl's explanation reminded him of his own talks with his mother. How she never talked about his father.

"Do you… want to find out?"

"Sometimes," Maria admitted. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love my uncle, and he has always been there for me. But there are some times where I… wonder."

Ash looked downwards with a thoughtful expression.

"You know, my dad has never been part of my life. I've only ever known my mom, and she doesn't talk about dad at all. She's not a bad mom in any way, but I do want to meet him one day. In fact… I really hope that I'll find him on my journey eventually."

Maria looked at him in surprise.

"I'm not saying you'll find out about your parents on a journey," said Ash, "but it could happen.

"I guess," said Maria. "I mean, it would still be nice to see the world."

"Yeah, it would," said Ash. "You really should think about it, A-ma-ri-ya."

Maria blinked and stared at him.

"That's not my name," she said in bemusement.

"It's not?" Ash said in confusion.

"No, it's Maria."

"That's what I said."

"No, you said _Amarilla_. That means yellow."

"You mean your name is Yellow?"

Maria slapped her hand against her face.

* * *

"Oh my gosh! This is delicious!"

Ash and the rest of the gang were amazed by the taste of their meal. While they had tried to argue that David and Maria didn't need to feed them, their hosts had been insistent that they needed to be ready to go back into the forest, which could potentially bring them back into Beedrill territory.

Ash was now very grateful for this, as the food was proving to be excellent.

"I'm glad you liked it," said David. "Maria made it with _mucho amor!_ "

"You made it?" Meowth said in amazement. "That is amazing!"

"Pika. Pikachu."

"Oh, come on," Maria said, her cheeks turning red. "It's not that great."

"Are you kidding me?" Sam said happily. "This is so much better than the pre-packaged stuff we've been eating!"

"Eevee! Eve!"

"We don't need to eat that stuff, though," Mikaela chimed in. "I could have cooked for you guys!"

"Well… maybe," said Ash.

Mikaela pouted as she went back to her food.

* * *

That night, the gang huddled together in Maria's room.

"So you're going to be a Breeder?" Maria said in fascination.

"Yeah, I am!" Mikaela said enthusiastically. "I can't wait to meet a whole lot of different Pokemon and learn all about what they like and what helps them grow!"

"Eevee Eevee!"

"That's amazing," Maria said in awe. "I would love to meet different Pokemon like that!"

"Yeah," said Ash. "That's what our journey is all about, you know! Meeting all sorts of Pokemon and making our dreams come true!"

"Making your dreams come true…" Maria said in a thoughtful voice.

"Absolutely," said Sam. "And maybe helping people out here and there. I do want to become a great G-Man one day, you know!"

"Chu, Pika."

"That sounds kind of dangerous," said Maria. "It sounds like a lot of Pokemon could get hurt. And I don't like seeing Pokemon get hurt."

"Well," said Sam, "some Pokemon do get hurt. But the job of a G-Man is making sure that Pokemon don't get hurt. So we do everything we can to keep everyone safe."

"Oh. I guess that makes sense."

"Yeah," said Sam. "True, it's dangerous, but we make sure no one else has to be in danger."

"That's amazing," said Ash.

"Yeah," said Meowth, "you're like a superhero or something!"

The gang laughed together, while the blonde girl watched them with a thoughtful look on her face.

* * *

The next morning, Maria got up early to check their surroundings. Fortunately, as she looked out the window, she saw no signs of the Beedrill swarm. She smiled in relief, before a sigh escaped her lips.

To be honest, she had greatly enjoyed the time she had spent with her new friends. While life in the forest was hardly dull, she had never really gotten to interact with other people her age. Even in her rare trips to the city, she only spoke to other people briefly. And she didn't have a chance to go anywhere else. She never got a chance to explore the world.

Exploring the world. Ash, Sam, Mikaela, and their Pokemon friends were so lucky.

"Is something wrong, _Mija_?"

She looked up at the voice to see her uncle standing next to her.

"Oh, _Tio David_ ," she said quickly. "I'm okay. I was just… making sure there weren't any more Beedrill outside."

"I see," David said as he looked out the window. "Well, it does look like they all decided to leave, right?"

"Yes… it does."

David placed a hand on Maria's shoulder, causing her to flinch.

" _Dime, Mija_ … what's really bothering you?"

Maria winced. She really didn't want to have to tell her uncle, but it didn't seem like she had a choice.

"It's just… Ash, Sam, and Mikaela are going to go out on an adventure together to make their dreams come true. And they're getting to travel all over Kanto, and meet so many different people and Pokemon! And that's really cool! But…"

"But?..."

"I… I don't know. I really liked them, and I was hoping I could get to know them better. And it would be really nice to go around the region too. I mean, I've always lived here in the forest with you, and I love it. But, well, sometimes I wonder about the rest of the world."

David smiled as he watched his niece explain her dilemma. He was happy that she had managed to make such good friends, even if it had all been due to a rather unfortunate situation. She had so little contact with other people out here that he sometimes worried about her. Still, the fact that she was able to connect with these newcomers so easily filled him with hope.

And her sadness made him worry.

"And what do you want to do, _Mija_?"

Maria looked away, clearly not comfortable with what she was about to say.

"Well, I want to be there for you, _Tio_ ," she said finally. "If I leave, you'll be all alone. And I don't want to leave you alone. I want you to be happy."

David sighed, then smiled. Maria was too kind, too selfless, even now that she was given the opportunity that she had always deserved.

She was so much like her mother.

"You know, _Mija_ , I once made a promise. A long time ago, I promised that I would be there for you. I promised that I would always protect you, no matter what."

"What do you mean?" Maria asked. "Who did you promise that to?"

For a fraction of a second, David winced. But he quickly composed himself as he continued his explanation.

"It was… to someone very important to me," he said cryptically. "It's not important. What matters is that it's my duty to make sure you're always safe, and to care for you. And I've always made sure to do that."

Maria smiled as she remembered all the times her uncle had been there for her. He had fed her, taught her, cared for her. When she needed help, he was there to lend a hand. When she was sick, he had been there to nurse her back to health. And every single night, he had been there to tuck her into bed, with a bedtime story and a kiss on the cheek.

Even if her parents hadn't been around, he had raised her just as if she were his own.

"Even so, I can't always be there to protect you."

Maria looked up at her uncle in surprise.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Maria, there will come a time when you have to keep going on without me. It's not because I want to leave you. I would stay with you forever if I could. But as long as you are with me, you won't be able to make your own dreams come true."

The blonde girl's eyes went wide.

"As much as I hate to admit it," David continued, "I can't protect you and give you space to grow at the same time. Sooner or later, I will have to let you go on your own path. And when you do, you'll grow apart from me, on your own. And that's okay. I will still be happy knowing that you're chasing after your own dreams."

Maria was staring at her uncle in shock. She had never thought he would say anything like this. And yet, here he was, encouraging her to go out and follow her dreams.

A smile crept up onto her face as her eyes began to water. She flung herself into his arms and hugged him as tightly as she could.

"Is… is it really okay if I leave you all alone?"

" _Ay, Mija_ ," David said as he hugged her back, "You go out and explore the world. Make your dreams come true. I'll still be here when you get back."

Despite herself, Maria couldn't help but smile. Even if she still worried about leaving her uncle behind, she still wanted to experience everything the world had to offer.

* * *

Ash and his friends grinned as they prepared to head out.

"Man, I can't wait to get back on the road," said Ash. "Good thing those Beedrill aren't around to cause trouble anymore!"

"You said it," said Meowth. "All clear from here to Pewter!"

"Well, you two sure are excited," Sam said observantly. "I'll bet you've got a great plan to take on the Pokemon Gym!"

"Nope!" said Ash. "But I'm sure we'll figure it out when we get there!"

Sam fell over.

"Pikachu, pika," Pikachu said an annoyance as he got back up onto his trainer.

"Well, I think you'll do great," said Mikaela. "Once you figure out what you're doing, of course."

"Ev-Eevee!"

The group smiled, ready to move out. At least, until Meowth noticed an unexpected addition to their party.

"Wait, what's Maria doing?"

Ash and the others turned around in surprise. There standing in front of them was Maria, displaying a surprising amount of confidence. She was now wearing a black turtleneck shirt and dark blue jeans, both of which were covered up by a long yellow sleeveless vest. She also was wearing a pair of purple boots, as well as a brown belt around her waist. Most notably, she had recovered her straw hat, which was now sitting on top of her head.

"Do you guys have room for one more?"

Ash and the others looked at her, each of them speechless. At this sight, the blonde girl felt herself shrink back.

"I - I mean if you don't have room, that's fine," she said timidly. "It's not like I need to go with you guys or anything. I just thought-"

"We'd love to have you along!"

Maria's eyes widened as the raven haired boy stretched out his hand. A huge smile took over her face as she grabbed it.

"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome!" Meowth said enthusiastically. "We always got room for more friends!"

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "Especially if those friends saved us from a bunch of angry murder bugs!"

"...What she said," said Sam. "Welcome to the team!"

Maria smiled, then frowned a bit as she turned back to face her uncle.

"Well… I guess this is goodbye _, Tio._ "

" _Supongo que si_ ," said David. "But don't be sad, Mija. You're going to learn so much on this journey. And you'll be back before you know it."

Maria smiled, then gave her uncle one last hug. She then rushed back to her friends.

"Well, are you ready?" Ash asked.

"Yeah!" said Maria. "I can't wait to go!"

With that, the gang said their goodbyes to David and marched out the door.

"I can't believe I'm finally going out on my own," said Maria. "It's… exciting, but also a bit scary!"

"Well, that is true," said Sam. "But trust me, it's going to be great!"

"Pika."

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "You're going to love this!"

"Vee!"

"I sure hope so," said Maria. "I mean, I've never really gone out of the Viridian area, so it's going to be really different from before."

"Hey, don't worry," said Ash. "I'm sure you'll do great, A-ma-ri-ya!"

Maria rolled her eyes.

"I told you before. It's Maria."

"Isn't that what I said?"

"No," said Maria, "I told you, that means yellow."

"Wait," said Mikaela, "your name means Yellow?"

Maria groaned as the rest of the group laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, in case it wasn't obvious enough, Maria is based on Yellow from Pokemon Adventures.
> 
> I still have no idea why Yellow's real name was in Spanish, but I've decided to roll with it. In this case, her name was easy enough to confuse with Amarilla, which is the feminine version of Amarillo. The masculine version was fine in the manga, where Yellow was trying to pass as a boy, but here it makes much less sense. Thus, Amarilla del Bosque Verde; or, as I decided to call her, Maria Bosqueverde.
> 
> Presumably, she's from whatever region is south of Unova and Orre. Or maybe west of Kalos.


	7. I Love Brock 'n' Roll

"Ah!" Ash said as the gang walked into the city. "It feels so good to be out of the forest!"

The gang looked around, all impressed by their new surroundings. Pewter City was very different from Viridian, being slightly bigger, and a lot rockier. Being located right next to a huge rocky mountain, the city was famous for its many rock formations, rocky hills, and the fossils that were frequently excavated from said rocks. Even the local snack food, Pewter Crunchies, were known for being rock hard, making them difficult for tourists to eat.

Speaking of rocks, the gang decided to take a break, resting on a bunch of rocks.

"So, you're going to challenge the gym, right?" Mikaela asked Ash.

"Oh yeah!" said Ash. "I can't wait to get my first badge! Especially since I couldn't get it at Viridian City."

"Yeah," said Meowth, "that gym won't know what hit them!"

"I still think you're lucky the Leader wasn't there," said Maria. "But yeah, I kind of want to see how this will turn out."

"Me too," said Mikaela. "So, what plan do you have for the gym, Ash?"

"I dunno," said Ash. "But I'm sure we'll figure it out!"

The rest of the gang fell over in bemusement.

"Well, you'd certainly better have a plan soon, otherwise you're going to suffer."

The gang looked up, and were met by the sight of an older man with a thick brown beard.

"What do you mean?" said Ash.

"I mean Gym Leaders are no laughing matter," the man said. "If you're not prepared, your Pokemon will have a terrible time."

The man stroked his beard.

"What Pokemon do you have, young man?"

"Well," said Ash, "I have my buddy Meowth, and I also have a Spearow and Caterpie."

"You don't stand a chance," the man said.

"What?!"

"You know," said Sam, "I think it might be good to take some time to train your Pokemon before-"

"Not you too, Sam!"

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to train your Pokemon a bit," said Maria. "It might make it easier to win when you have your gym battle."

Ash opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything, Meowth interjected.

"You know, Ash, it would definitely be good to know what we're up against before we try anything. Maybe we should watch a gym battle or something before we try it out. See what we need to do to win, and whatnot."

"Did that Meowth just talk?"

The raven haired trainer groaned. He really wanted to challenge the gym right now. But his friends, and even his starter, were all urging him to be cautious.

As much as he hated to admit it, they were probably right.

"Okay," he said finally. "I guess being a bit more prepared can't hurt."

"Now that's more like it!" Meowth said as he patted his trainer on the head.

"You know," the man said, "I heard there was a trainer who was going to challenge the gym today," the man said. "We could go watch."

"That sounds fun," said Mikaela. "Let's go!"

"Yeah," said Ash, "I guess I could learn a thing or two."

"Great," the man said. "Before that, though, you all owe me money."

"What?!" said Sam. "Why?!"

"You all sat on my rocks," the man replied. "I charge for that, you know."

This time, Ash joined his friends in falling over.

* * *

While all the gyms in the Kanto region were notable in one way or another, the Pewter Gym was particularly noteworthy. The gym was, in many ways, a reflection of the city, being made almost entirely of rock, and being the home of several rock type specialists.

The most notable, of course, was the Gym Leader.

It had been a big surprise when Flint Johnson had announced his intention to step down and leave the gym to his son. Many had been skeptical that his son, wrestling champion Dwayne "The Brock" Johnson, would be as capable a Gym Leader as his father. However, in spite of his youth, The Brock had quickly proved to be as effective as a trainer as he had been as a wrestler. His Onix, in particular, was known for being incredibly powerful, and nearly impossible for a rookie trainer to take out. And his other Pokemon were nothing to sneeze at either, being very strong in their own right. Many speculated that The Brock continued to hone his skills by wrestling with his Pokemon, which said a lot not only about his Pokemon, but also about the man himself.

Ash, being Ash, had forgotten all of this.

"So," he said as the gang sat down in the stands, "we're watching a gym battle, huh?"

"Yeah we are," said Meowth. "Should be interesting to see."

They watched as a trainer walked onto the battlefield. Ash looked on in curiosity as he watched the brown haired girl take her place, ready for battle. On the other side of the field, The Brock walked up, the thick muscles on his bare chest on display for all to see.

"This will be a battle between The Brock, leader of the Pewter City Gym, and the challenger, Verity of Twinleaf town," the referee announced. Each trainer will be allowed to use two Pokemon, and only the challenger will be allowed to switch Pokemon. The battle will be over when one side has no more Pokemon left to continue."

"Okay," the girl who was apparently called Verity said. "Let's do this, Buizel!"

She tossed out her pokeball, which burst open with a flash. From there, a strange, orange colored Pokemon with two tails emerged.

"Bui! Buizel!"

"Who's that Pokemon?" Ash asked as he consulted his Pokedex.

" _Data not found. Pokemon may not be native to Kanto. Consult your local professor for more information._ "

"I really need to talk to Professor Oak about getting Pokemon from other regions into this dex," said Ash.

Down on the battlefield, The Brock was looking at the foreign Pokemon with fascination.

"A Sinnoh Pokemon, huh?" he said. "We don't see one of those every day."

"Yeah," said Verity. "I get that a lot."

"Well, this should be pretty interesting, Valerie."

Verity blinked.

"Actually, my name's-"

" **It doesn't matter what your name is!"** The Brock roared, causing Verity to jump. " **So you better be ready to fight, 'cause otherwise The Brock will lay the smackdown on your candy ass!** "

"Language, Brock," the referee said.

" **You wanna come up here and say that to The Brock's face?!** "

"...No sir," the referee said as he lifted up a flag. "Battle begin!"

Not wanting to waste any time, Verity immediately called her first command.

"Buizel! Use Water Gun!"

"Dodge and tackle 'em!"

"Buizel! Bui!" Buizel cried as he squirted out a stream of water, only for Geodude to dodge and slam against the weasel Pokemon.

"Now squish that jabroni with a Rock Tomb!"

The rock type threw a number of large rocks which quickly surrounded Buizel, before crushing him with intense force. The sea weasel Pokemon cried out in pain, but was not knocked out yet.

"Buizel!" Verity called out. "Get out of there with Aqua Jet!"

"Buiii!" the little orange water type cried as his body was surrounded by water. He then shot forwards, breaking through the rocky prison that had formed around him and slamming into Geodude.

"Yes!" Verity cheered, before her face paper as she realized what had just happened.

"Grab him and Rollout all over his candy ass!"

Geodude grabbed Buizel before rolling all around the battlefield. The hapless water type was barely able to fight back as he was slammed underneath the rock Pokemon over and over again.

"Buizel!" Verity yelled. "Hang on!"

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, but was really only a few seconds, Geodude stopped moving. He then proceeded to toss a now unconscious Buizel onto the ground.

"Buizel is unable to battle!" the referee declared. "Geodude wins this round!"

Barely able to speak, Verity returned Buizel to his pokeball. Up in the stands, Ash and his friends were watching in awe and, in the case of Ash and Meowth, dread.

"Man," said Mikaela, "I heard that The Brock was crazy strong, but that was amazing!"

"I mean, water types should have been strong against rock types," said Sam. "But that Pokemon didn't stand a chance!"

"Yeah," said Maria. "I still think the Viridian Gym Leader would beat him, though."

Ash and Meowth didn't comment, but simply stared at the Gym Leader. They then turned to each other.

"Please tell me you got a plan," said Meowth.

"...Train a lot?" said Ash.

Back on the battlefield, Verity had called her second Pokemon forwards, a small blue and white avian. While the situation wasn't looking good, she didn't seem to be willing to back down.

"We can still do this, Piplup!" Verity declared. "Use Bubble!"

"Dodge it and use Rock Tomb!"

Geodude rushed out of the way of the bubbles, then tossed out a number of large rocks. Fortunately, Piplup managed to dodge the attack, and sent out another barrage of bubbles. This time, Geodude wasn't able to get out of the way, and some of the bubbles made contact.

"Don't let that stop you, Geodude!" The Brock yelled. "Rollout all over that chicken!"

"Geo!" Geodude cried out as he began to roll towards his opponent.

"Piplup!" Verity yelled. "Use Peck to flip him over!"

The penguin Pokemon charged as his beak began to glow. He then jammed it against the incoming rock type and tossed it into a nearby rock, trapping it.

"Now use Bubble again!"

Piplup shot out a huge barrage of bubbles, which slammed against Geodude. The rock Pokemon cried out in pain as the bubbles hit it, then went limp as the attack stopped.

"Geodude?" The Brock said, only to be met with silence.

"Geodude is unable to battle," the referee declared. "Piplup is the winner!"

Piplup and Verity sighed in relief as Geodude was recalled.

"Not bad," The Brock said as he grabbed a second pokeball. "But The Brock is not done yet! Now let's see how you do against Onix!"

He then tossed out a second pokeball, revealing a huge gray Pokemon. The rock snake Pokemon roared, causing his opponent to take a step back.

"So, Valerie," The Brock said as he crossed his arms, "tell me one thing: **can you smell what The Brock is cooking?!** "

Verity and Piplup began to sweat nervously. Up in the stands, Ash and Meowth turned to each other.

"We're screwed," said Meowth.

* * *

Despite the type advantage Piplup had, Onix had proven to be too much. Verity hadn't said anything as she recalled her Pokemon; she had just rushed out as fast as she could.

"So," the man said as he led the group out of the gym, "do you still think you're ready to challenge The Brock?"

Ash didn't speak, too shocked by what he had seen to speak. Meowth, however, had his own thoughts.

"I don't think we're ready yet."

"I thought not," the man said. "After all, you saw how easily The Brock can beat a team of water type Pokemon, which of course are well known for their advantage against rock type Pokemon. So if he is strong enough to overcome a type disadvantage like that, then what chance do you have?"

The man then smiled as he turned towards Ash.

"But if you want, I can give you guys some help."

At this, the raven haired trainer finally spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"You're clearly woefully underprepared for the gym challenge," the man said. "Maybe I can give you some help?"

Ash looked at his friends, who seemed interested in what the man was saying. He then turned to Meowth, who seemed enthusiastic about the offer.

"We really should take the offer, Ash. It sounds like a pretty sweet deal."

Ash sighed. He would have preferred to take on the gym challenge without help. But he had seen how powerful The Brock's team was, and he had no idea how to defeat him.

With a sigh, he turned to the man and nodded.

"So, what do you have in mind?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, things aren't looking good for Ash! Is he going to be able to overcome this challenge? How will mystery character be able to help win without a Pikachu to overcharge?
> 
> Well, they do have a Pikachu, technically. Although it isn't Ash's, so it's not like it would do them any good...
> 
> Also, something about wrestling? And something about a Sinnoh girl? I dunno.
> 
> (In all seriousness, though, I actually planned for Verity to appear even before Sinnoh was officially confirmed. As for Brock... I just have weird ideas like that sometimes.)


End file.
